Holden Dumps V6 Turbo, Sticks With V8 For Supercars

Stay Of Execution...?

We're not talking about the closure of the company's Adelaide factory - although that was arguably more painful.

It's the plan to ditch V8s and use V6 turbos in their Supercars from 2019.

Today, Holden's head office tore it all up and announced a stay of execution for the beloved V8.

“After working closely with all Holden teams we have decided to put a hold on the development of the V6 Supercars engine," said marketing director Mark Harland.

The V6 was going to be entered as a wildcard in selected races this year before a full rollout this year.

The company is keen to stress performance wasn't the key issue and it's not ruling out another look at a different engine, further down the road.

“We’re very confident that the package would have been fully competitive and know that we have an extremely valuable bank of knowledge to refer to as and when a different engine platform is explored again in the future."

But with the project now shelved, all eyes are firmly on winning races in 2018 including this weekend's Tyrepower Tasmania SuperSprint at Symmons Plains.

“For now we can turn our focus solely onto ensuring that the all-new 2018 Commodore is a race-winner for not just Triple Eight, but for our valued customers, partners and fans as well.”

But if fans are adamant the V8 is here to stay, they're going to be proven wrong... eventually.

“Change is always difficult for some people to accept, and it always will be. But change is inevitable," said Triple Eight boss Roland Dane.

“The rules allow people to bring other configurations of engine, whether it’s four-cylinder, six-cylinder or a differently-configured V8, they allow that."